Conditional jail sentence and fine for Toronto resident guilty of GST/HST fraud

July 29, 2021

Toronto, Ontario

Canada Revenue Agency

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced on July 29, 2021, that Alejandro Tenorio Chavez (Tenorio), of Toronto, Ontario, was sentenced on July 26, 2021 to a conditional jail sentence of six months less a day, including three months of house arrest and a curfew for the remainder of the sentence. He was also fined a total of $89,769. Tenorio pleaded guilty in the Toronto Court House to three counts of unlawfully obtaining or attempting to obtain Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) refunds, and to one count of failing to report and remit GST/HST collected under the Excise Tax Act.

A CRA investigation revealed that Tenorio as a director of ATDA Finances First Group Inc., Time Network Ltd., and Dos Magazine Ltd., filed 55 GST/HST returns for the filing periods from April 1, 2012 to January 31, 2017, claiming refunds for purchases that were either fictitious, personal in nature or not incurred by the companies. By filing fraudulent returns, Tenorio claimed a total of $91,496 in GST/HST refunds to which the companies were not entitled. Tenorio also evaded $28,196 in GST/HST collected from a customer, as the net amount was not reported and remitted on the GST/HST returns of ATDA Finances First Group Inc.

All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.

Tax evasion is a crime. Falsifying records and claims, wilfully not reporting income, or inflating expenses can lead to criminal charges, prosecution, jail time, and a criminal record. From April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021, there were 36 convictions, with 15 taxpayers sent to jail for a total of 26.2 years. These individuals were sentenced for wilfully evading payment amounts totalling $10,902,950 in tax.

In addition to court imposed fines, taxpayers will have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA.

The CRA remains dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s tax system, as well as the social and economic well-being of Canadians during these unprecedented times. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion and false claims with all tools available to them. The CRA is continuously working towards making sure that individuals and businesses report income earned and eligible losses, and claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. As a result of COVID-19, we are seeing the increased importance of these benefits, and are working to make sure that they continue to be available to Canadians. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled, including ineligible claims for COVID-19 benefits, may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action.

The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA’s enforcement efforts.

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Contacts

Paul N Murphy
Senior Communications Advisor
416-952-8105
PaulNoel.Murphy@cra-arc.gc.ca

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